Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Classic rock, pop, and soul songs from the '60s, '70s, and '80s
Today’s early ’70s song of the day is “Montego Bay” by Bobby Bloom. Released as a single in September of 1970, this one peaked at #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #6 on the Cash Box Top 100. Bobby Bloom wrote “Montego Bay” with ace songwriter Jeff Barry. Mr. Barry is famous as half of a songwriting duo with…
From last week’s look at the early ’80s we jump back a decade to the early ’70s, and today’s classic early ’70s song of the day is “No Matter What” by Badfinger. This single was released in October of 1970 and hit #8 on the Billboard Hot 100. It did even better in the band’s native England, peaking at #5…
Today’s classic song from the late ’70s of the day is “Heart of Glass” by Blondie. Released in January of 1979, this danceable little number went to #1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100. (Surprisingly for a dance tune, it only hit #58 on Billboard’s Disco chart.) It was also a number-one hit in Australia,…
This week we’re fast forwarding slightly to the late 1970s and very early 1980s and some of the best tracks from that era. With that in mind, today’s classic song of the day is “Stop Your Sobbing” by the Pretenders. Released as a single in January of 1979, this track peaked at #65 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #34…
Today’s classic song of the day is another horn rock (or jazz-rock) classic, “25 or 6 to 4” by Chicago. This one was off their second album, the first after shortening their name from Chicago Transit Authority; released in June of 1970, it hit #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. “25 or 6 to 4” was written by the band’s…
In honor of the late Nicolette Larson’s birthday, today’s classic song of the day is her hit, “Lotta Love.” Released in the fall of 1978, this single went to #8 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100, and #1 on Billboard’s Easy Listening chart. “Lotta Love” was written by Neil Young, for whom Ms. Larson had…
Today’s classic song of the day is “Bad Sneakers” by Steely Dan, the second track on side one of Steely Dan’s 1975 album, Katy Lied. It was released as the second single from the album (the first was “Black Lightning,” which peaked at #37 on the charts), even though it only hit #103 on the Billboard Hot 100—which, if you…
Today’s socially conscious track by a legendary soul singer is “Living for the City” by Stevie Wonder. Released as a single in November of 1973, it went all the way to #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on Billboard’s Hot Soul Singles chart. “Living for the City” was the third track on side one of Stevie’s 1973 album,…
Today’s socially relevant classic song of the day by an R&B legend is “Mercy, Mercy Me (The Ecology)” by Marvin Gaye. Released in June of 1971, it hit #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 (for two weeks) on Billboard’s R&B Singles chart. It was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2002. “Mercy, Mercy Me (The Ecology)”…